Three full marathons. Each made me face a new challenge. The Bull Runner Dream Marathon, I battled plantar fasciitis, severe chafing, and the pains of a first marathon. The second, Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore (SCMS) presented us with a tough route and tough weather. On the other hand, my third full marathon and the country's first midnight race, the Condura Skyway Marathon, felt more like a mindgame.
Before the Race
The nervousness began to kick in the week prior to the marathon. My ankle, which I'd sprained during SCMS, was better but still not in top shape. A bout of flu had bogged me down the previous week, so I decided to take it easy as early as Wednesday night, carbo-loaded Thursday night (thanks to my good friend JR!). On Friday I loaded up on Gatorade (a pre-race ritual); by then I was a nervous wreck and could hardly think of anything else but the forty-two kilometers that awaited me.
The gun was to be fired at midnight. I figured I needed to wake up late on Saturday morning, so I slept at about 3:30 AM Saturday morning and woke up at past noon the next day. I loaded up on Spam (another pre-race ritual) and did a bit of quick window-shopping on Saturday afternoon (attempts to nap had failed), then went home to wait for Doc Dave, JC, and Kevin (who was running his first marathon), who were riding with me to Alabang. Doc Dave took the steering wheel -- and it was a good thing too, given how bad I am with directions -- and we got to the South in record time, more than three hours before gunstart!
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| Dinner at Starbucks |
Once we'd settled down and parked, we decided to have a light dinner at Starbucks Festival Mall. After dinner we got into our gear, stretched, and warmed up for a few meters. About thirty minutes before the race I headed to the front of the start line apart from my friends. I did so with reluctance, since I was under Wave A, which I expected would be comprised of tense, competitive runners. I stretched my ankle hoping it wouldn't give me any problems, and I prayed silently and asked for guidance every step of the way. In no time, fireworks were sent up in the air, and the gun was sounded.
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| Pre-race jitters! |
First Half
Wave A was divided into two groups. Once we were allowed to run, many of them went speeding off, and it was hard not to get caught up in the pace of the people around me. I didn't feel fast, though at least my ankle was behaving.
I immediately realized two things: males greatly outnumbered females, and this wasn't going to be an easy run. Hydration stations didn't come at regular intervals and didn't offer much variety (basically I stuck with water since there wasn't much 100plus offered, though I'm not a fan of carbonated sports drinks anyway). KM markers were present, but most were a few hundred meters off, so decided to rely on Bee, my Garmin, instead of the markers.
The rolling terrain started as early KM 5. The absence of cars and obstructions was a good change, although after a few more kilometers I was already bored with seeing nothing
but the road. The skyway was well-lighted, yes, but the surroundings were pitch-dark. I was more than grateful for my Sony Walkman earphones, which kept me from losing my sanity, which became hard after KM 10. The terrain was not consistent, and I wanted to reserve my speed bursts for the downward slopes. I was also starting to feel hungry, so I gratefully took a banana when I got to the banana station. I was relieved when I got to around KM 21, since that meant I was halfway done, unfortunately at this time I started to get really bored; it felt like we were going around in circles.
Second Half
I reached a wall at KM 22. By this time I knew it was almost impossible to achieve a personal best. I took my single packet of Roctane and almost immediately felt the much-needed boost, because as if seeing nothing but pavement wasn't enough, there was an area we passed three or four times! There was also supposed to be a gel station around around this area, but I didn't see it. I could feel salt as I brushed my hand along the skin on my arms.
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| Dark, dark , dark! Photo courtesy of Senator Pia Cayetano :) |
A few kilometers later I hit an even bigger wall. I was still feeling strong, but I just couldn't feel the drive to run anymore, and I actually started contemplating how long it would take me to finish the race if I walked the rest of the way. I could feel that my feet were starting to blister. There was the consequence of being a forefoot striker, that is, the growing soreness in my calves. I tried to change my stride, albeit unsuccessfully. The only thing that perked me up was that the weather was as close to perfect as it could get, given that it was February and still quite dark.
My mind started to go blank; I could think of nothing but my music and the pounding of my feet against the pavement. It was a relief every time I saw a familiar face, since this seemed to take my mind off my hunger, chafing, and blisters. I couldn't help but miss the terrain of my last marathon in Singapore. Although SCMS' route was more challenging, it wasn't as much of a mindgame as this one, and the pavement there had been more forgiving on my soles and knees.
At around KM 37, I resigned to the fact that I wasn't going to achieve a sub-6 finish nor a personal best. I needed to cover five kilometers in about thirty minutes, and I knew that would be impossible given the gnawing pain in my legs and arms caused by chafing. I silently scolded myself for forgetting to apply BodyGlide; my calves were strained but my heart and legs still felt strong (thank you, yoga and BodyPump!).
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| Last 3km!!! |
Coming across some 10k and 21k runners helped me pick up my pace a bit. I knew I still had a lot of energy left inside me, and I didn't want to put it to waste. This, along with my favorite music coupled with cheering from friends, drove me to sprint when I finally saw the finish line about a couple of hundred meters away. The feeling of euphoria was nowhere close to how I felt when I finished my first full marathon (or the second, for that matter), but it still felt great draping that gigantic medal around my neck.
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| Platito medal + Popsicle = Happy Runner! |
Post-Race Thoughts
Race organization was top notch. Registration (which I did in Riovana Katipunan) was a breeze, though it had been the priciest road race I'd joined held within the metro thus far. Hydration stations were well-stocked, kilometer markers were placed at regular intervals (though many were a few hundred meters off), there were banana stations, and the route consisted of rolling terrain and was quite challenging. Cheerers at designated stations gave runners a much needed boost when we needed it. And I must say, the weather was perfect.
However, I admit that of my three full marathons, the Condura Skyway Marathon was, by far, the least memorable and the greatest test of patience. When I ran the half-marathon the previous year I was so anxious to get on the skyway; this year I couldn't get wait to get off it! It got especially bad around KM 25-30, where there were endless U-turns that meant we passed the same area four times!
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| Mindgame!!! |
Also, the time of the race also meant darkness; the skyway itself was well-lighted, but the surroundings were pitch-dark and hardly offered any view. Also, drinking nothing but water did nothing to curb my boredome. The only alternative to that was 100plus, and I'm not a fan of carbonated drinks during races. Energy gels were present but were apparently not well distributed.
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| Daybreak, with less than 1 km to go! :) |
Being held at night was not all bad, of course. I'm naturally a night person, and a night run also meant not having to battle heat, which (along with humidity) had been my primary nemesis during my first full marathon. The light traffic allowed the closure of the skyway to traffic, which consequently permitted runners to roam freely without the worry of cars and pollution.
Prior to the race, I'd been thinking about whether the Skyway Marathon would be my last adieu to the world of full marathons (within the country, at least). But my half-baked finish and knowing I can do much better instills in me an extraordinary determination.
So shall I start training for the Milo Marathon later this year? ;)
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